Saying goodbye is never easy.
Especially when it is to a family member. Our dog, Casey, passed away after living to be about a bajillion in dog years. Even in her old age, she still managed to be the most unique dog we’ve ever had.
Unique? Yep, first of all, she was a PBGV. Now before you ask, it stands for Petite (small) Basset (low) Griffon (wirehaired) Vendeen (part of France). Picture a basset hound…with longer hair…who just licked an electrical outlet. That’s kind of what they look like. It’s a rare breed recently recognized by the AKC. From owning one, I can tell you that the most outstanding traits are the love to hunt (brought me a rat one time. Dead, but nonetheless), strong willed, protective (would lay across any pathway in the house to monitor comings and goings making human navigation more challenging.), and possessing the ability to burp like a trucker.
Another unique thing is how she came to live with us. Where I worked had daily deliveries. The drivers become well known to us. One day, the driver came in and told us about a dog that he had acquired from his sister via air transport. He had the dog with him and happily showed her off. He thought it was a basset hound mix. One look at her eyebrows (a breed trait), and I knew she was special.
Unfortunately, Casey didn’t get along with the family dog. And due to isolation at her former home, she wasn’t well socialized. So I offered to take her. I’ve dealt with problem adoptees before and this one wasn’t 120 pounds.
When we got her, her coat was clipped short. I couldn’t quite figure out why since the breed is fluffy. Soon I learned about her hatred for grooming. She snapped at brushes, combs and scissors. While okay with a bath, she would try to bite the brush while you were try to comb her out. As a result, she could mat up faster than any animal I’ve ever seen. Eventually, it meant a trip to the groomer to get clipped. Several groomers invited her to never come back as grooming her was akin to “grooming an alligator”.
Eventually, I found a mobile groomer who could get her decent looking with out the worry of a lawsuit.
For as often as she tried to eat groomers, vets were her go to snack. It took many veterinary offices to find one who could handle her. We stuck with them for the rest of her life. She still sat under the chair in the office with her back to vet every visit, but once we got her out in the open using spy and military tactics at times, he had her handled.
Casey spent everyday protecting us from the world. She learned under the careful tutoring of our senior basset and resident diva, Penny. She, then, taught a basset puppy everything. But if you were in the bathroom, she would lay outside. Bedroom? Casey was waiting inside the bedroom door to fend off attackers. She would trail my husband like a secret service agent up until her health denied her the ability.
She participated in expos, parades and picnics. Not happily, but still did what she had to do. Playing in the snow was a great deal of fun for her. She would come in covered in snowballs so dense that we would have to get the hairdryer to melt them so we could see her face!
Her favorite things were biscuits. Home made with cheese sauce. When these came into the house, she would actually quiver in anticipation. By the end of the treat, there was often cheese sauce all over her head. I can tell you that I don’t think that I have every enjoyed a food that passionately.
And that is how I knew when it was time for her to go to the vets for the last time. She refused her biscuit, and all other food. She paced and slept and withered away in a matter of days.
Her last unique act was that when we got her to the vet’s office, she passed away before he even got into the room. I suppose that is the ultimate way to avoid the vet.
Head strong and loving, troublesome but cute, Casey was a treasure that I’m happy that we found.